Joe Mazzulla of the Boston Celtics was asked a couple months ago about the possibility of winning the Coach of the Year award this season, and his answer was succinct.

“I don’t need it,” he said back in March. “I think it’s a stupid award.”

On Tuesday, Mazzulla won a stupid award.

Mazzulla was announced as the NBA’s top coach for 2025-26, after the Celtics earned the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference — despite playing most of the year without Jayson Tatum while he recovered from Achilles surgery and amid rebuilding expectations from many following the departures of players like Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday.

To be very clear, Mazzulla’s dismissal of the award in March was for one reason — he thinks it should be more of a “coaching staff of the year” than a “coach of the year” award, and that is a noble approach. He repeated that during Tuesday night’s announcement of his win, beginning his remarks on NBC by thanking those who made it possible.

“The long nights, the trips, game plans, the video guys that are clipping up the film and coding it, the assistants who are putting in the game plan, I think there’s so much that goes into winning one game,” Mazzulla said. “It starts with the players, but it goes to our staff. I feel bad that they’re not here — but forever indebted to the guys that we have that give up time with their families and their time to give us a chance to win every day.”

The 37-year-old Mazzulla is the youngest winner of the award since Phil Johnson in 1975, the NBA said.

Fittingly, the Celtics coach will get the Red Auerbach Trophy — which is named for the legendary Celtics coach. Mazzulla becomes the fourth Boston coach to win the award, following Auerbach in 1965, Tom Heisohn in 1973 and Bill Fitch in 1980. Auerbach, a Hall of Famer, guided the Celtics to nine NBA championships, including eight in a row from 1959 through 1966.

“This is well deserved recognition and a testament to both Joe and his staff,” Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens said. “With all of our unknowns entering the season, Joe did a fantastic job building and growing a team. He pours everything he has into competing at a high level, while helping players find the best versions of themselves within the framework of a team.”

Detroit’s J.B. Bickerstaff — for the second consecutive year — finished second, and San Antonio’s Mitch Johnson placed third.

The award is based on regular-season results only. Votes from the panel of 100 reporters and broadcasters who cover the NBA were turned in during the play-in tournament, which was more than a month ago.

The Coach of the Year award — the one handed out Tuesday is separate from the one presented earlier this spring by the National Basketball Coaches Association, which Bickerstaff won — is the last of the major awards given out by the NBA to commemorate the best of the 2025-26 season.

The rundown of awards:

• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City: Most Valuable Player and Clutch Player of the Year.
• Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio: Defensive Player of the Year.
• Cooper Flagg, Dallas: Rookie of the Year.
• Keldon Johnson, San Antonio: Sixth Man of the Year.
• Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Atlanta: Most Improved Player.
• Bam Adebayo, Miami: Social Justice Champion.
• Derrick White, Boston: Sportsmanship Award.
• DeAndre Jordan, New Orleans: Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year.
• Brad Stevens, Boston: Executive of the Year.
• Moussa Diabaté, Charlotte: Hustle Award.
• The All-NBA, All-Defensive and All-Rookie teams.

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Washington — President Trump on Tuesday underwent a “6 month physical” at Walter Reed National Military Hospital, he posted on social media.
“Just finished my 6 month physical at Walter Reed Military Medical Center,” Mr. Trump posted on social media. “Everything checked out PERFECTLY.”

A state champion coach in Connecticut is heading to the place where he starred in high school basketball.

Heading back to his alma mater

Lyman Hall High School Athletics recently announced on social media that ex-Trojans standout Jim Economopoulos is returning to his alma mater to take over the boys basketball program.

Economopoulos replaces Rob Ruys, who coached the Trojans to an 8-13 record in the 2025-26 season.

“The Lyman Hall Athletic Department is proud to announce the hiring of Jimmy Economopoulos as our new head boys basketball coach,” Lyman Hall Athletics posted via X. “He’s a (Lyman Hall) graduate and current educator in the Wallingford Public Schools who brings over 10 years of successful coaching in the (Southern Connecticut Conference). Welcome home coach.”

Economopoulos told CT Insider that he is looking forward to returning home and “do something great at the school” he graduated from in 2009.

Economopoulos’ time at Daniel Hand High School

The decision comes after Economopoulos resigned as head coach of the Daniel Hand High School boys basketball program in April.

Economopoulos guided Hand to the program’s first CIAC championship title in 2022, a Division III crown, after the team won 56-39 over Kolbe-Cathedral. Economopoulos finished with a 112-105 mark in 10 seasons with the Tigers, including 80-42 in the previous five seasons.

The Tigers went 9-14 in Economopoulos’ final season at the helm.

“(Leaving) was very much on the table heading into the year (2025-26 season). And the chaos of my life this winter confirmed it for me,” Economopoulos said via CT Insider last month.

Playing days for the Trojans

Economopoulos led the Trojans to the 2008 CIAC Class L title game and the state semifinals in 2009, but Lyman Hall went on to lose both games.

“That game hurt 1,000 times worse than the state final loss,” Economopoulos told CT Insider. “In the state final loss, we weren’t expected to be there. We had almost everybody back from our junior year and we thought for sure we were winning a state championship that senior year. We thought we had won that game. It was devastating when the shot went in.”

Family connection at Lyman Hall

Economopoulos’ late father, Nick, coached girls basketball for 35 seasons between Lyman Hall, East Catholic and Coginchaug. In that span, he compiled 619 career coaching victories.

At Lyman Hall, Nick Economopoulos guided the Trojans to Class L state titles in 1985 and 1986, including three state final appearances in 1979, 1982 and 1991.

Jim’s sister, Christie Madancy, is currently Lyman Hall’s girls basketball coach.

“It definitely makes it easier. I’ll be working with a girls coach I know very well,” Jim Economopoulos said via CT Insider. “My nephew will be a freshman (on the basketball team) next year, so we will have family in the gym pretty consistently.”

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